Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 18, Shloka 20
Adhyaya 18 — Arjuna Declines the Throne; Garga Directs Him to Dattatreya; The Gods Defeat the Daityas through Dattatreya’s Vision and the Movement of Lakshmi
बृहस्पतिरुवाच दत्तात्रेयṃ महात्मानमत्रेः पुत्रं तपोधनम् ।
विकृताचरणं भक्त्या सन्तोषयितुमर्हथ ॥
bṛhaspatir uvāca dattātreyaṃ mahātmānam atreḥ putraṃ tapodhanam |
vikṛtācaraṇaṃ bhaktyā santoṣayitum arhatha ||
ಬೃಹಸ್ಪತಿ ಹೇಳಿದರು—ಭಕ್ತಿಯಿಂದ ನೀವು ಮಹಾತ್ಮ ದತ್ತಾತ್ರೇಯನನ್ನು ತೃಪ್ತಿಪಡಿಸಬೇಕು; ಅವರು ಅತ್ರಿಯ ಪುತ್ರ, ತಪಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಸಮೃದ್ಧ, ಮತ್ತು ಅಸಾಮಾನ್ಯ ಆಚರಣೆಯವರು।
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FAQs
Holiness is not always bound to social conventionality. The devas are instructed to approach sanctity with bhakti and humility, even when the saint’s outer behavior appears ‘vikṛta’ (nonstandard).
Didactic-narrative material embedded in Purāṇic history (not sarga/pratisarga). It supports dharma by presenting the authority of tapas and realized beings in restoring order.
‘Vikṛtācaraṇa’ hints at the avadhūta paradigm: the liberated may appear socially inverted while remaining inwardly established. The devas must learn to recognize inner realization beyond outer form.